Mareks “YEKINDAR” Galinskis joined Team Liquid more than two years ago, on October 18. Back then, he was a sought-after player who had demonstrated his talent while competing for Virtus.pro.
While playing for VP, YEKINDAR won Flashpoint Season 2, DreamHack Open December 2020, cs_summit 7, Pinnacle Fall Series #1, and ESL Challenger #48. He also obtained numerous top-eight results in S-tier tournaments and even Majors. Because of these results and his contributions, Liquid signed him.
Unfortunately for them, the two years while YEKINDAR played for the organization were, for the most part, more challenging than expected. Sure, Liquid finished 2nd at ESL Pro League S16 and BLAST Premier: World Final 2022, and then obtained a 3rd – 4th place finish at IEM Katowice 2023.
But between February 2023 and December 2024, Liquid competed in just one more Grand Final and it wasn’t even at an S-tier event. The numerous top-eight results seem to suggest that this team was a decent top 10 competitor in CS2 but definitely not good enough to be a serious contender for Major trophies.
Because Liquid is a top esports organization with numerous exceptional results in a wide range of competitive games, having a roster that struggles to climb higher than 5th – 8th in prestigious CS2 tournaments is simply unacceptable.
Liquid’s Recent Roster Changes
Before benching YEKINDAR, Team Liquid parted ways with several other members in 2024. Wilton “zews” Prado, the team’s former coach, left in June. Just two weeks later, Felipe “skullz” Medeiros left as well and joined FURIA Esports. Then, in September, Casper “cadiaN” Møller abandoned the ship.
Now that YEKINDAR is benched, Liquid will need to find a good replacement. One name that comes to mind is Lotan “Spinx” Giladi, who is rumored to be replaced in the near future by Robin “ropz” Kool from FaZe Clan.
As for YEKINDAR, he will most likely return to Europe and rejoin one of the top 25 teams. His career is far from over but he will need to prove himself again before he gets another chance to compete for a top organization.
